HUGHTON ON: WOLVES

At his pre-match conference, Chris Hughton discussed the latest team news, the luxury of having competition for places, his respect for Kenny Jackett and the sort of test he expects from Wolves.

Team news: “Craig Mackail-Smith is fine and has trained today. He was touch and go in midweek as was Dale Stephens, but they both trained today and will be ready for the weekend.”

On the Wolves clash: “I expect them to come here and try to win the game because that’s how they play. I don’t expect them to sit back and catch us on the break and with where they are at the moment they’ll see it as an opportunity to win. Against Derby, we had a difficult period in the second half and we had to dig deep and there could be periods like that on Saturday, so we’ll need to be resolute because they’re a good team.”
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Competition for places: “I’ve got a competitive squad and it’s very difficult to continue to play the same players week-in, week-out with the amount of games we have. When people look at my team selections I’m not a manager that changes as much as others but there are times when you have to freshen things up. What the players want is a competitive squad with players pushing for places and ultimately they want to be part of a winning team. We all know that when you’re winning games, you can make all the changes you want and nobody thinks about it but when you make changes and don’t win, sometimes it’s perceived as being down to changes. If I had the opportunity, I’d make the changes again as it gave the players an opportunity.”

Kenny Jackett: “He’s got great experience and he’s done a good job wherever he’s been. If you look at his time at Millwall – with the resources and budget he had there – he did a magnificent job. Also, when he went to Wolves at the time there were a lot of changes and he had to clear a lot of players out which is never easy and takes time. He’s a very experienced and knowledgeable manager and he’s done very well.”

Wolves’ progress: “Looking at their standing in the table and considering they have come up, they’re doing very well. They have a way of playing - which they don’t change too much - and they have a manager that’s vastly experienced. They’re a big club and they’re fighting at the end of the table that could see them get promoted at the end of the season. They’ve got a lot to play for and they thoroughly deserve to be where they are."